The media must put its house in order

Ardimas Sasdi, Jakarta

Despite its shortcomings, the Indonesian media, since deregulation in 1998, is now relatively free, as should be the case in a democracy. With this new freedom the media can manage its own affairs and act as a counterbalance to the power of government and vested interests.

The media gained a fair measure of freedom when in 1998 former President B.J. Habibie scrapped regulations requiring the media to apply for permits. The media gained even more freedom under Habibie's successor, Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, who dissolved the despised Ministry of Information that had been used as a tool repressive control by the Soeharto-led New Order regime.

Since then, the media, seizing upon the new freedom brought about by the reform movement, changed its role from being a mouthpiece of the government to being a critical watchdog, like the media in Western countries. Barking headlines, hard-biting editorials, sharp commentaries, satirical cartoons and investigative exposes are now common features of our media.

This media freedom took place alongside a greater freedom of expression enjoyed by people generally, who are now free to criticize the government for abuse of power or poor public services without fear of arrest. For its part, the media has vigorously reported public grievances and started discussing other matters previously considered taboo, like the military and the life of the president's family.

However M. Budyatna, a communications professor at the University of Indonesia, has claimed that there has been no significant change in the way the media operates, except for a greater freedom enjoyed by journalists and executives of the media to undertake their journalistic duties and run their businesses. Budyatna referred to the failure of the media in general to promote the basic rules of journalism such as accuracy, balanced reporting, and comprehensiveness; to draw a clear lines between opinion and fact; to act as a forum for exchanges of opinion; and to represent diversity in society in terms of gender, ethnicity, language and religion.

Criticism against the free media, which began to emerge in 1999, has grown louder by the day, with critics, including members of the media, agreeing on one thing -- a need for the media to be more introspective and to improve professionalism.

Upset by the free media, certain sections of the elite have reacted in various ways. Some have mobilized mobs to attack journalists and media offices, while others used more sophisticated ways -- by filing legal suits against the media. In 2000, supporters of Gus Dur attacked the office of Jawa Pos, a Surabaya-based newspaper, on allegations that it was being partisan.

The Jawa Pos incident is only one of dozens of cases pitting the media against certain elites over the past seven years, including Rakyat Merdeka daily vs. former President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Rakyat Merdeka vs. former speaker of the House of Representatives Akbar Tandjung; Tempo weekly magazine and its sister publication Koran Tempo daily vs. the tycoon Tomy Winata, Tempo vs. businessman Marimutu Sinivasan and Tempo vs. the Pancamarga youth organization; and Kompas vs. Marimutu Sinivasan. Some of the cases ended in court with whopping payouts being awarded; others were settled out of court.

The stark rise in the number of disputes between the media and certain elites and media trials -- compounded by the use of draconian laws by a notoriously corrupt legal system that categorized libel as a criminal act -- has sparked concern among both Indonesians and foreigners. Former U.S. ambassador to Indonesia, now U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, Paul Wolfowitz, recently warned in the New York Times of the possible negative implications of media trials on a free media and the infant democracy in this nation of 225 million people.

So what must the Indonesian media do?

Firstly, the media must put its house in order. Much higher standards must be introduced into newsrooms, as well as the setting up internal control mechanisms like the establishment of complaints committees and improvement in the professionalism of journalists and managers through better training and education programs. Building standards in reporting and improving control systems is relatively easy to do, but training needs time, funding and good planning.

Secondly, the media must learn to treat the reading and viewing public with respect and dignity through accurate, factual and balanced reporting, with immediate correction or clarification of errors - a practice ignored by many media organizations on the grounds that corrections could tarnish their image.

Thirdly, it is time for executives and owners of media organizations to organize and talk with like-minded people who are also concerned with freedom of the media and democracy, and to launch public education campaigns on the role of the media, something that has been largely neglected in the past.

No less important is that the media must immediately initiate talks with credible representatives of the public and government to find a style of reporting compatible with our society and culture that does not compromise the media's critical role.

The need to embark on these steps is supported by latest developments concerning the media, including the upgrading to portfolio status of the ministry information and communications, and the `invitation' by the presidential office to executives of two media firms last Thursday and Friday for a meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. During the meeting Susilo reportedly reiterated his displeasure with the media for reports critical of his government.

These matters should be in the thoughts of senior journalists who will be holding a meeting in Pekanbaru, Riau in commemoration of National Press Day on Feb. 9, an appropriate moment to engage in a little introspection. Before it's too late, the media must put its own house in order. Before others do the job for them.

The author is a staff writer at The Jakarta Post and can be contacted at opinion@thejakartapost.com.